Kathmandu, April 3 -- Controversial businessman Deepak Bhatta, who has been arrested in a money laundering case, is alleged to have been involved in multiple irregularities over the past decade and a half, operating under the patronage of political leaders, bureaucrats and senior security officials in power.

Bhatta has been accused of manipulating licences and share acquisitions in hydropower, insurance, microfinance, travel agencies and educational institutions, with his alleged lobbying at the political level to appoint favourable individuals to leadership positions in regulatory bodies and influencing decisions for personal gains.

Past records suggest Bhatt used to influence the formulation of specifications for security agencies' pr...